5 die after plane crashes shortly after takeoff in French Alps

Police say five people have died after their plane crashed shortly after taking off from an airport in the French Alps.

The plane crashed in a forest in an uninhabited area outside Grenoble, a city that is the gateway to the mountain resorts of the Alps in southeastern France.

An official with the French gendarmerie said the plane crashed Saturday shortly after it took off from Grenoble's airport. Everyone aboard died. It was not clear what kind of plane they were flying. The identities of the victims were not immediately known.

The official would only give the information on condition of anonymity because of police rules.